The Religion of the Samurai: A Study of Zen Philosophy and Discipline in China and JapanNukariya, Kaiten
Religion
The Religion of the Samurai: A Study of Zen Philosophy and Discipline in China and Japan
Nukariya, Kaiten
Buddhism -- China; Buddhism -- Japan; China -- Religion; Human beings -- Origin; Japan -- Religion; Zen Buddhism
[FN#119] Let us state our own opinion on the subject in question.
The foundation of Hinayanism consists in the four Nikayas, or four
Agamas, the most important books of that school. Besides the four
Agamas, there exist in the Chinese Tripitaka numerous books
translated by various authors, some of which are extracts from
Agamas, and some the lives of the Buddha, while others are entirely
different sutras, apparently of later date. Judging from these
sources, it seems to us that most of Shakya Muni's original teachings
are embodied into the four Agamas. But it is still a matter of
uncertainty that whether they are stated in Agamas now extant just as
they were, for the Buddha's preachings were rehearsed immediately
after the Buddha's death in the first council held at Rajagrha, yet
not consigned to writing. They were handed down by memory about one
hundred years. Then the monks at Vaisali committed the so-called Ten
Indulgences, infringing the rules of the Order, and maintained that
Shakya Muni had not condemned them in his preachings. As there were,
however, no written sutras to disprove their assertion, the elders,
such as Yaca, Revata, and others, who opposed the Indulgences, had to
convoke the second council of 700 monks, in which they succeeded in
getting the Indulgences condemned, and rehearsed the Buddha's
instruction for the second time. Even in this council of Vaisali we
cannot find the fact that the Master's preachings were reduced to
writing. The decisions of the 700 elders were not accepted by the
party of opposition, who held a separate council, and settled their
own rules and doctrine. Thus the same doctrine of the Teacher began
to be differently stated and believed.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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